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police, she decided. Digging into her handbag, she
pulled out her phone then checked that her purse, notebook and other personal
effects were all safely inside. Relieved, she had a moment’s pang thinking of
all the other cherished items she’d left behind. Adelaide forced them out of
her mind. Right now she couldn’t do anything about it. She needed the police to
get that man out of her house, assuming he hadn’t left when he’d properly
regained consciousness.
    Adelaide had no proof this was connected with the gold Jared
had told her about. Maybe it was all a coincidence and she’d simply been
burgled and assaulted.
    “Where is it?” she remembered the man demanding. No.
It wasn’t random or fate. The man had certainly been after something. And
unless there was a sudden black market for sexy, strappy shoes or trashy
romance books, Adelaide didn’t own anything remotely valuable.
    But somehow there were evidently a few people who thought
she was in possession of some gold bars from Saddam Hussein’s stash.
    Jerks. She didn’t know diddly-squat about any of that. And
ransacking her house should have proven that. If she had gold lying around,
would she have such threadbare cushions on her couch? Would her wardrobe be so
woefully bare? If she had a bunch of gold, she’d have three times as many shoes
and a dozen more slinky cocktail dresses to go out in at night.
    No. She’d been just fine until a certain Lieutenant Jared
Teague had stomped his big, Army-boot-clad foot into her placid little life.
    Equal parts annoyed and afraid now, Adelaide acted on
instinct. The call to the police could wait—her attacker would be long gone by
now and the cops could make their reports anytime in the next few hours.
Pulling her purse from the handbag, she riffled through her business cards and
snagged Jared’s. She called the number on the card before she could lose her
gumption.
    “Hello?”
    She’d have recognized that deep drawl anywhere. Clearly he’d
given her his direct line.
    “I hope you’re happy now, Lieutenant,” she snapped, far more
angry now than anything. “My life wasn’t perfect but it was quite satisfying
until you stomped your way into it. What have you done? Is this some lame trick
to get me to talk to you? Were you the good cop and that mongrel you sent the
bad one?”
    “Wait, Adelaide? Is that you? What are you talking about?”
    “I’m talking about that jerk you sent over to my house.”
Adelaide found herself getting furious all over again as she thought about what
had just occurred. “The guy looking for the gold—who else could have sent him?
Did you know he was a psycho? I really think he was going to kill me. He sure
didn’t have an issue with bruising me or hurling me around my house. Speaking
of which, you’d better be willing to pay for it to be cleaned up. Heaven knows
what he’s broken in there. And if you think I’m the kind of paltry, weak little
woman who will let herself be beaten up or worse just to answer a few questions
I don’t even know the answer to, then let me tell you something for free,
mister—”
    “Hang on a minute,” Jared interrupted her.
    Adelaide was working up a steaming head of anger, but the
sharpness of Jared’s tone caught her off-guard. She was about to start up
again, but he talked over her in a firm, no-nonsense tone.
    “Adelaide, look, I really have no clue what you’re talking
about. Are you all right? Why don’t you—”
    “Oh, so it’s perfectly fine for you to be innocent and
unknowing but not me?” Adelaide snapped. “Listen, Lieutenant, I told you I don’t
know where your stupid gold is. I don’t even believe my uncle had anything to
do with your heist.”
    “Dammit, stop for a moment and explain it to me,” Jared
insisted. “I can’t follow you. Now start back at the beginning and assume I’m
an idiot. Tell me what’s happened.”
    Adelaide frowned and a lot of the heat of anger went out of
her. Jared sounded genuinely